Carrying ID proof becomes mandatory for all reserved train passengers

Carrying identity cards will be mandatory for train passengers in all reserved classes from December 1 as part of railways move to facilitate bonafide travellers and to reduce misuse of reserved ticketing system by unscrupulous elements.

At present only passengers travelling on e-tickets, Tatkal tickets and those undertaking journey in AC classes on the tickets issued through the computerised Passenger Reservation System (PRS), except in III Economy -3E class, are required to carry identity cards.

With the new provision, the condition of carrying one of the prescribed identity cards has now been extended additionally to other classes of travel - Reserved Second Class (2S), Sleeper Class(SL), III Economy Class(3E) and First Class (FC), an East Coast Railway (ECoR) release said.

The change in the policy is aimed at facilitating the travel of bonafide and genuine passengers and simultaneously to check the scope for travel on transferred tickets, it said, adding it is also considered that the proposed change shall also be useful from the security point of view.

The rule will apply for all forms of ticket, including those for sleeper class, issued by Railways through computerised passenger reservation system (PRS) or Internet.

The decision to introduce photo I-cards for sleeper class passengers is likely to deter touts from booking tickets under fictitious names and selling them to passengers at a premium, a railway official said.

In February, Railways had made it mandatory for AC-class passengers to carry identity proof with them. Passengers travelling on a Tatkal or an e-ticket are also required to carry I-cards while undertaking train journey.

"Earlier, it was mandatory for AC-class passengers to carry I-cards. Now, we have decided to make sleeper-class passengers also to carry I-card. This has been done to facilitate genuine passengers to avail confirmed tickets," said the official.

He said the non-AC travellers were kept out of the photo I-card decision at that time, adding, "The policy ambit is being widened now so that every passenger in reserved class onboard a train has a valid identity card."